Johann Jacob Rabe (born January 16, 1710, in Lindflur; died on February 12, 1798, in Ansbach) was a German (non-Jewish) translator of the Mishnah and the Talmud. He was city chaplain in Ansbach (Onolzbach).
Moses Mendelssohn, a prominent philosopher, once remarked on Rabe's remarkable patience and scholarly prowess: "This man is a strong Talmudist," wrote Moses Mendelssohn to Herder under date of Dec. 3, 1771, "and I wonder at his patience. He has translated into German the first three parts of the Babylonian and the Jerusalem Talmud, as he informs me, and has them ready for the printer, but can find no publisher for them."
In 1761, Rabe applied the expression "From Moses to Moses there never arose one as great as Moses" to Moses Mendelssohn, drawing a parallel between Mendelssohn and the great medieval Jewish philosopher Moses Maimonides. This phrase, originally coined to praise Maimonides, was used by Rabe to highlight Mendelssohn's significant contributions to philosophy and theology at the young age of thirty-two. This reference is noted in Micah Gottlieb's work, "Faith and Freedom: Moses Mendelssohn's Theological-Political Thought".
Rabe's works include the following: